Report: Warrington 50-19 Huddersfield

A superb second-half display from the Warrington Wolves saw 38 unanswered points scored in a 40 minute period which turned the game round after a difficult first half against the Huddersfield Giants, to earn a second straight win and further cement the grip on 2nd place in the league.

The only surprise in the team selection today was Jack Hughes being chosen to start at loose forward - yet another change in that position for us. This meant that Ben Murdoch-Masila started for the second game running, while Ben Currie came back into the team in the second row. Mike Cooper was back after being rested against Hull KR, replacing Lama Tasi, who was on the bench. Jason Clark was rested from the squad while Ben Westwood and Harvey Livett didn't make the squad today.

Wire made a very good start to the game and were in front after just four minutes when Declan Patton's cross-field kick was taken down by Currie, who touched down and scored his first try of the season - a brilliant moment after his horrendous injuries. Stefan Ratchford converted for 6-0. It looked like another score was on the cards for Tom Lineham when he crossed over, though is was ruled out for a forward pass from Ratchford - incorrectly so, as the ball had been touched on by a Huddersfield defender. Nevertheless, a second score wasn't far away. From a penalty, Daryl Clark scruffily got the ball away to captain Chris Hill, who crossed over. Ratchford had an easy conversion for 12-0. Warrington defended well with knocks to Goodwin, Lineham and Patton, though a spell of madness was soon to come.

An unnecessary offload from Lineham caught Currie unawares and he dropped it on his own 20m line, allowing Jermaine McGillvary to run through and send Louis Senior over - though his pass looked very forward. Oliver Russell converted and three minutes later the Giants were in again when some poor Wire defending and a general lack of alertness from Patton, who missed a simple tackle, allowed McGillvary to play Darnell McIntosh in to score and level the game up. Remarkably, another try was conceded just moments later when another missed tackle from Patton gave a free run to McIntosh, who set up Alex Mellor to score a simple try. Another conversion from Russell meant Huddersfield led by six points and this was narrowly extended when Russell sent a drop goal over to give the Giants a 12-19 lead at half time.

It was a different Warrington side in the second half though. Patton delivered a bang-on-the-money kick to Bryson Goodwin, who crossed over for his third try of the season - though Goodwin did look to be offside. A successful conversion for Ratchford meant there was only a point in it, and the one-point lead changed hands when Ratchford elected to take two points from a penalty to make it 20-19 in favour of Warrington. Wire's lead was further extended when Blake Austin scored a glorious try. After receiving the ball from a Daryl Clark pass on the halfway line, Austin slalomed past no fewer than five Huddersfield defenders, finding gaps here, there and everywhere, before celebrating a breathtaking try under the posts in front of the East Stand. A highlight of any rugby league match was rounded off by a Ratchford conversion which gave Wire a seven-point lead.

Two minutes afterwards, Daryl Clark celebrated his new deal with a great try. Clark collected the ball from Currie being tackled and sent a lovely dummy before bundling himself over the line. An easy conversion for Ratchford was soon followed by Austin's second try of the game - and fourteenth of the season. A short ball from Patton found Austin, and the number six forced his way over despite being brought down, brilliantly moving the ball from one hand to the other to get it down. Ratchford surprisingly missed this one, though Wire were in again shortly afterwards when a nice ball from Currie sent Goodwin over, the centre showing good strength to fend off two defenders from close range. Ratchford made no mistake, and the tryscoring was finished when an Austin grubber kick deflected into the path of Murdoch-Masila, who had the simple task of touching down. A Ratchford conversion and a goal from a penalty on the hooter meant that Warrington cracked 50 points for the third time this season - all of which against teams beginning with 'H'!

After a very poor end to the first half, it was an excellent performance in the second half in both an attacking and defensive sense. To score 38 points without conceding a single one in 40 minutes is very impressive. Austin was the star once again, while Clark was brilliant as ever, but it was nice to see good displays from Currie, Goodwin, Hill, Cooper and Akauola. Austin's first try was an absolute joy to behold, and seeing Ben Currie score after so long out was a nice moment too. Hopefully the knocks that Lineham and Goodwin picked up aren't too serious, with the exciting prospect of Castleford away on Friday night. Going forward, we are very good, though there is a definite weakness defensively, and it seems to come in patches - ten minutes at the end of the first half here, ten minutes at the end of the first half at Saints. Still, massive credit to Steve Price and the team for the second half display. On we go!

Make sure to check out my player rankings from this match and my build-up to the Castleford game on the blog this week.

It's always our year.

Daniel (@aloosewire)